Whiting Landscape were the winners of a British Association of Landscape Industries National Principal Award at the 2018 Awards Ceremony held at London Mayfair’s Grosvenor House Hotel on Friday. The winning scheme that we submitted, in the Regeneration less than £500k category, was for the Petwood Hotel, Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire.
The Petwood Hotel is famously remembered as being the Officer’s Mess for the legendary RAF 617 Dambusters Squadron in 1944 and 1945, referred to by Second World War pilots as “……a splendid place remote from battle.” On the night of May 16th – 17th 1943, 133 aviators flew out towards Germany as part of a daring attack on the Ruhr Valley dams earning them the nickname “Dambusters”. 53 of them never returned.
The Hotel also has another claim to fame though; the fine gardens were designed by Harold Peto, one of the most celebrated landscape designers of the 20th Century. Unfortunately these historic gardens had fallen into disrepair and had been subject to vandalism and theft. Whiting Landscape were appointed by Landscape Architects Park Hood to realise the vision to “..restore and upgrade the historic gardens as designed and originally realised in 1913 – 14.” The extensive undertaking was to provide a “…functional, beautiful setting for the Hotel throughout the seasons” , restoring the gardens sympathetically and with preservation of the context and setting of the Grade 2 Listed Building.
Whiting, who celebrated 40 years in business last year, won this prestigious Principal Award for the rebuilding of the Temple of Atalanta at Petwood; restoration works to the Terrace and long walk and the Dutch Sunken Garden; extensive new drainage and the installation of new lawns and entrance piers.